When visually perceived images differ from objective reality, you have a trick of the eye – an optical illusion. But what happens when you translate that to cake? We spoke to Jarid Altmark, of Jarid’s Awesome Cakes, about the collaboration he has organised all about optical illusions to find out more about the cakes created. […]

When visually perceived images differ from objective reality, you have a trick of the eye – an optical illusion. But what happens when you translate that to cake? We spoke to Jarid Altmark, of Jarid’s Awesome Cakes, about the collaboration he has organised all about optical illusions to find out more about the cakes created. […]

When visually perceived images differ from objective reality, you have a trick of the eye – an optical illusion. But what happens when you translate that to cake? We spoke to Jarid Altmark, of Jarid’s Awesome Cakes, about the collaboration he has organised all about optical illusions to find out more about the cakes created.

Tell us about your collaboration

In this collaboration, 30 artists from across the globe took on the challenge of creating their very own edible optical illusion. Taking inspiration from movies, tattoos, or even street art, these artists have truly pushed their limits to create a piece that deceives the eye.

What inspired you to do this theme?

Optical illusions have always been a constant source of inspiration for me. I’ve seen a couple of optical illusion cakes, but I thought it would be so cool to push the bar and see how other cake artists can deceive the eye with edible optical illusions.

Sweet Jennie D

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Tell us about a few of the pieces

Let me preface this – everyone in the group did not have an easy time creating their edible optical illusions, but every single one has truly impressed me. What I find interesting is that while there was a theme, every piece is so different and each artist’s style is truly represented in each of their illusions.

When explaining the type of illusions people could base their creations on, the one that seemed the most popular was something 3D looking 2D, which happens to be my favourite type of optical illusion. Jennifer Jenkins Kennedy, of Jenny’s Haute Cakes, blew my mind with her rendition of a classic Van Gogh self-portrait in REAL cake. MIND BLOWN!

Another type of illusion is the impression that the subject of the piece is moving. Brittani Diehl, of Layde Cakes, created an adorable little dragon where every way you move, it looks as if the head is turning. While she has taken pictures at all different angles, this amazing piece can only be truly admired through a video or in person.

Lastly, the use of a series of shapes or objects to create a new subject is also a very popular type of optical illusion. Kyoko Ueda, of Sugar Voyager, made extremely fine royal icing lines and pieced them together to eventually see the word ‘Love’ when placed on a mirror – incredibly creative!

Despite the type of illusion used, I just loved how there were so many different mediums used and not one piece is similar to the next. Every artist had to overcome their fears and venture outside of the norm, and they completely knocked it out of the park.

Flappergasted Cakes

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How did you decide on this group of people?

The majority came from the first collaboration that I ran, Me, Myself, and I, and the rest I scouted out. Maybe because I’d seen them create an optical illusion cake before, or because I’m just obsessed with their work. But they are under the radar, and I wanted to shed a spotlight on some not as well-known artists.

Did anything go wrong?

I am glad to report that nothing has gone wrong!

Sweet Delights Cakery

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If you were to do it again, what would you do differently?

The only thing I would have done differently is possibly add a few more members, only to see how they would’ve interpreted the theme of optical illusions.

If you were to do another collaboration, how should others get involved?

Please feel free to reach out to me! I would love to have you on board, but as for getting into collaborations… post your work ALL over the place. Being seen by the right person will get you into any collaboration you want. And the odds are, once you’ve done one, you’ll be in all of them!